The Past Can Haunt
by jamese765
Summary: After helping the Garcia family save Richmond, Jeff and Clementine set out to find the last two people still alive from their last official group: AJ and Abby. However, their search has several setbacks, thanks to a figure from their past. Can they save the kids and deal with this person who is on a quest for revenge?
1. Prologue

**Prologue:**

 _"Well… This is it."_

 _"Bring them back."_

 _"We intend to."_

 _"I hope they're there."_

 _"They'll be there… We'll find them."_

A gentle breeze lightly blew some loose hair in her face as she walked toward her destination. Despite the annoyance, she didn't care, as her mind was elsewhere. At last, she reached her destination.

"Welcome to McCarroll Ranch," Said the guard at the gate. "Can I help you?"

"I'm here to collect two children," she replied.

"Names?" The guard asked.

"AJ and Abby," she replied. "I'm picking them up for their caretakers, Clementine and Jeff, who asked me personally to come."

"Why couldn't they come themselves?" he asked.

"They're busy in Richmond, helping rebuild," she replied. "I'll keep them safe. I promise."

"Alright then," the guard replied. "Let me take you to them."

"Thank you," she replied, as she followed him inside.

Half an hour later, she walked out with the children and turned away from Richmond the moment she knew the guards weren't looking anymore.

 _I will have my revenge,_ she thought, as they vanished into the nearby woods.

 **Hey guys! I'm back! Hope you like the mystery surrounding the prologue. Yeah, I've made it easy to guess who it might be, but there's still the unknown of exactly who. Don't worry, all with be revealed as the story goes on. In order to make proper guesses** **and understand what's going on, PLEASE read the previous three stories (When It All Goes Wrong, We're A Team, and Never Alone) before reading this! As I said at the end of Never Alone, this is not going to be following Season 4, so this is it's own story. Any events that end up similar to the final season will be purely cooincidential. Until next time...**


	2. Chapter 1

**We Thought It Was Over**

"Are we there yet?"

Jeff fought the urge to give a smart reply to the question Clementine had decided to annoy him with, to pass the time, as they walked. It had been a few days since they left Richmond and they were getting irritated by all the setbacks that made what should've been a short trip longer than they would like. To make matters worse, they had also run out of ammunition for their guns, which forced them to hide or use makeshift weapons when they encountered walkers. Nearly out of patience, they kept on walking, knowing they had to reach AJ and Abby.

"It can't be much longer, now, Clem," he said.

"I hope so," she replied. "I'm getting tired of feeling so close yet so far away."

"Me too," he said, as they kept walking.

An eerie silence fell between them for several minutes, before Clementine spoke up again.

"Remember the first time you took me hunting?" she asked.

"I remember it like it was yesterday," Jeff replied. "I hit a squirrel… and you hit a tree, alerting a walker to our presence faster than I'd ever seen."

"I still don't understand why that walker didn't come toward the gunshots," she said. "Either way, that's a lesson I'll never forget."

"I'm just glad you're still around to remember it," Jeff replied, with a smile.

"Me too," she said, before falling silent again.

Several more minutes of walking passed before they spotted something in the distance.

"Is that what I think it is?" Jeff asked.

Clementine took out the binoculars she had found on their journey and took a closer look. The look on her face when she lowered them was all Jeff needed to see to know the answer: They had found the ranch.

"Last one there is walker food!" she called as she took off running.

"Hey! Wait for me!" Jeff called, as he was left far behind.

Jeff was out of breath when he finally caught up to Clementine, who had thankfully stopped to let him catch up.

"Getting tired in your old age?" she teased.

"Hey now," he replied. "I'm still young. Just didn't expect you to take off so fast!"

"Who are you?!"

The duo jumped and looked toward the gate. There was a guard with a gun pointed right at them.

"We've come to pick up two kids," Jeff replied.

"Names?" the guard asked.

"AJ and Abby," Clementine replied.

The guard seemed surprised at Clementine's response.

"Would your names happen to be Clementine and Jeff?" he asked, as he lowered his weapon.

"Yes," Jeff replied. "Why do you ask?"

"Well… the kids are already on their way to Richmond," the guard said.

"What do you mean?" Jeff asked.

"Someone came by yesterday and picked them up, claiming you asked them to," the guard replied.

"We never sent anyone to pick them up," Clementine said.

"You didn't?" the guard asked.

Jeff and Clementine just shook their heads in response.

"Well ****," the guard said. "I'm sorry, but I think we've been tricked."

"They have to be here!" Clementine said. "Lingard said they were!"

"And he wasn't lying," the guard replied. "Look… Let me take you inside to talk to the people in charge, here, and they can explain it to you."

Looking for answers, they agreed and followed him inside. Nearly an hour later, they left the ranch with worried looks on their faces.

"What do we do now?" Clementine asked.

"We start with where the person who took them told the people at the ranch they were going," Jeff replied, as he looked back down the way they had come. "We go back to Richmond."


	3. Chapter 2

**A New Mission**

"I just don't understand," Clementine said, as she and Jeff walked. "Who would take the kids?"

"Well," Jeff began. "Who have we dealt with in the past who might've found out we're still alive"

"That's a long list, Jeff," Clementine replied.

"Indeed," Jeff said. "Let's see… those bandits that nearly killed me, before we met the cabin group, Carver, Jane, Mike, Bonnie,..."

"Mike and Bonnie?" Clementine asked. "They might've sided with Arvo, but I don't see them getting revenge. And those bandits were killed by Carver, who himself was killed by you, wasn't he?"

"That leaves Jane, of those you let me list," Jeff replied. "But I don't see her doing that to us. Once we kicked her out, she just vanished without a care about what happened to us."

"There's still others," Clementine said.

Before Jeff could reply, they noticed the familiar sight of Richmond, in the distance. Without a word, they ran to the gates, hoping the kids were inside, as the people at the ranch assumed. They were tired by the time they reached the gates, where Max was standing watch.

"Well, well," he said. "Good to see you're back."

"I see you've been forgiven, Max," Jeff replied.

"Took them a couple days, but they finally understood I was only following orders," Max said.

"Not that your redemption story isn't interesting, Max," Clementine interrupted. "But, we need to speak to Javier and Kate. It's urgent."

"Sure thing," he replied, as he pushed the button to open the gates.

Shouting their thanks, the team hurried inside.

After some searching, Jeff and Clementine were relieved to find their newest friends inside the church, gathered together for a meeting.

"Hey, you're back!" Gabe said, as he was the first to notice them.

"Good to see you," Javier added, as he and the others gathered around. "Where are the kids?"

"That's why we're here, Javi," Jeff replied.

For the next ten minutes, Jeff and Clementine explained what happened from the moment they left until their return. Everyone was just as surprised as they were to learn that someone had taken the kids.

"Where could they be?" Eleanor asked.

"We were hoping the people at McCarroll Ranch had been right to assume that whoever collected them had brought them here," Jeff replied.

"We haven't seen them," Kate said. "Unless they were snuck in, they're not here."

"Just great!" Jeff said, throwing his hand up in frustration. "The kids have been kidnapped."

"But who would do that?" Conrad asked.

"We have quite the list of enemies," Clementine replied. "Though a large portion of them are confirmed dead, there's still the ones we don't know the fate of."

"I can help you look for them," Gabe volunteered, before anyone else could speak.

"I appreciate your offer, Gabe," Jeff said. "But this is our mission. We've taken care of them for a few years, now, so it's our job to get them back."

"Where will you go?" Mariana asked.

"We'll stay here for the night," Clementine replied. "Then we'll head south, as that's the direction the people at the ranch said their abductor likely took them, rather than come here."

"So why did you come here, when they were taken south?" Javier asked.

"We believed there had been a mistake," Jeff replied. "But we were wrong."

Everyone saw the sun was setting, so they decided to end the conversation there, for the night, and went to bed, with Jeff and Clementine getting an empty apartment for the night. As they got ready to go to sleep, Clementine spoke up.

"What if we don't find them?" she asked, as she laid down.

"We will, Clem," Jeff replied.

"But will they be alive?" Clementine asked. "Or Dead, or bitten? What do we do then?"

"We'll deal with it, accordingly," Jeff replied. "But I believe we'll get them back alive."

"Promise?" she asked.

"I promise," he replied. "We'll start search first thing in the morning."

"Sounds good," Clementine replied, before closing her eyes.

Her last words lingered in Jeff's head, taking him back to the day they met. She had said those exact words when he promised to protect her.

"I'm happy to know you still have faith in me," he whispered, as he drifted off to sleep.

 **Hello again! Yes, it's a short chapter, but I promise things will get better, as the story goes on. Since the first details of Season 4 have finally come out, it's safe to say I have deffinitely come up with my own story, so far. Who else is excited for the season to come out?**

undyingrage98489- You'll have to wait and see. Like Jeff and Clementine said in this chapter: They have quite the list of enemies still unaccounted for.


	4. Chapter 3

**The Search Begins**

The next morning, they met with the Garcias, Tripp, and Eleanor outside the church.

"Are you sure you don't want any of us to come along?" Javier asked.

"Absolutely," Clementine replied. "They're our responsibility. The only family we have left."

"We have to find them," Jeff added. "We still have a promise to keep for you guys."

Beside Javier, Kate smiled.

"We'll be waiting," she said, as the group walked toward the gate.

As they approached, Jeff and Clementine were surprised at the croad that had gathered.

"All this for us?" Jeff asked.

"Everyone in the community has heard about what happened," Eleanor replied. "So it's no surprise that they came out to see you off on your rescue mission."

As if on order, the crowd parted as the team made their way to the gate. When they reached the end of the wall of people, they stopped and turned around. Everyone looked at them, with looks of encouragement.

"I know we said this before," Javier said. "But, please, bring them back."

"We won't rest until we've found them," Clementine replied. "We've been without them for far too long to just give up."

"That sounds like the Jeff and Clementine I know," Javier said, with a smile.

With a signal from Javier, Max opened the gates, as Jeff and Clementine slowly walked out. Turning back one last time, they exchanged goodbyes and walked away from Richmond again, with the crowd's wishes of good luck fading as they walked.

"So," Clementine began. "Where do we go?"

"Let's head south," Jeff replied. "We can take what's left of Interstate 95 until we find a clue… or the kids."

"That could take a while," Clementine said, with concern.

"Nothing comes easy, these days," Jeff replied. "I would think that you'd understand that after all this time."

"I do," Clementine said. "It's just-"

"-that the kids have been out of our lives too long, already," Jeff finished for her. I know, Clem."

There were a few moments of silence before either one spoke again.

"How far does this interstate go?" Clementine asked, finally breaking the silence.

"We just passed a sign that says that we're on our way to Fayetteville, North Carolina," Jeff replied. "Hopefully, we won't have to go that far to find them."

They continued walking for the rest of the day, with a few breaks in between, before noticing it was starting to get dark.

"We need to find shelter, for the night," Jeff said.

"Are we near any cities or towns?" Clementine asked.

Jeff looked around and finally noticed buildings nearby, along with a sign on the highway.

"Looks like we're approaching Emporia, Virginia," he replied. "I'm sure there's someplace there we can use for shelter."

Clementine nodded in agreement and they made their way to the town. Once within the limits, they carefully searched for a place to sleep. After twenty minutes of searching, they finally found an old store and carefully unpacked some food they had been given and ate. After letting their stomachs settle for a while, they laid down and were out before they knew it.

The next morning, Jeff woke up to the sound of people talking. Thinking there was trouble, his defensive instincts kicked in and he jumped up, gun in hand. What he got was at least a dozen barrels pointed at him in response. Before him was a group of people who had walked in while he and Clementine slept and they looked like they meant business.

"Look," he said. "We don't want any trouble. We just stopped here, for the night."

"If you aren't wanting any trouble," one of the men said. "Explain your business in our territory."

"We're searching for the last two members of our last group," Clementine replied. "We lost them around a year ago and we've only just recently found out they're still alive and have been in this area."

"What do they look like," The man asked.

"Well," Jeff replied. "The oldest is a girl, who is almost 9 years old. White skin, and was last known to be wearing a plain red t-shirt we found for her and a pair of jeans."

"And the youngest is a boy around two years old," Clementine added. "Brown skin and was last seen in a t-shirt and overalls."

The man looked at his friends, then back to the pair.

"Were they with anyone?" he asked.

"Last we heard, they were at the McCarroll Ranch, controlled by New Frontier," Jeff replied. "But when we got there, they said someone had picked them up, claiming we sent them."

"But you didn't," the man finished for him.

Jeff and Clementine shook their heads.

"We wanted to pick them up ourselves," Clementine said. "I guess someone found out and…"

She trailed off, unable to complete her sentence. Jeff quietly put an arm around her, in an attempt to comfort her. The members of the group looked at them with sympathy.

"They mean a lot to you, don't they?" One of the other men asked.

"They're all we had for a long time," Jeff replied. "When we got separated, I had AJ and he had Abby. We each had our own issues the lost them, but they somehow ended up at the McCarroll Ranch together."

The men looked at each other, with looks indicating they knew something.

"We saw the kids come through here, a few days ago," the leader said. "They were accompanied by some hooded figure. Couldn't make out if it was a man or woman, but they definitely weren't alone."

"Which way were they heading?" Clementine asked.

"They were heading south," the leader said. "Not sure if that's the way they're still heading, but I did happen to hear the girl asking the adult a question. Something along the lines of 'what are we going to do once we reach the ski lodge?'"

Jeff and Clementine gasped. The leader looked at them.

"Something tells me you two know the place in question," he said.

"It's a long and painful story," Jeff replied. "One I'd rather not relive by telling it."

"Say no more," the leader said. "We won't make you talk about it, if you don't want to. Question now is… What are you two gonna do?"

Jeff and Clementine looked at each other.

"We have to find them, Jeff," she said.

"The ski lodge it is, then," Jeff replied. He then turned to the men in front of them. "We're going to follow them. We have to hope they take a long enough break that we can catch up and figure out who took them."

"I hope you find them," The leader said. "By the way, we never did get your names."

"I'm Clementine," Clementine said. "And I think you've heard me say it, but my friend's name is Jeff."

"Well, it's nice to meet you, despite the circumstances," the leader said. "I'm Leroy."

"Thank you for your help Leroy," Jeff replied. He turned back to Clementine. "We best get going. The longer we wait, the longer it'll take to find them."

"Right," she replied.

To help them on their journey, the men handed them some food, to help them out. Thanking them, Jeff and Clementine said their goodbyes and were on their way again.

 **Hello again everyone. As you can see, it's shaping up to be a trip down memory lane. A trip Jeff and Clem DO NOT want to take! For those who keep guessing it's Joan who kidnapped the kids... just keep reading to see if you're right! Until next time... Keep calm, and carry on.**


	5. Chapter 4

**The Long Road Ahead**

Several days after their encounter with the group in Emporia, Jeff and Clementine found themselves approaching a pile of rubble.

"What was this?" Jeff asked.

At first, they didn't think much of it, as they looked around. But upon further inspection, they realized where they were.

"Could it be?" Clementine asked.

The look of Jeff's face was grim.

"Wellington," he answered.

"Guess it's a good thing we declined the offer to take AJ and I in," she said.

"Who knows what would've happened if Kenny and I had let you go," Jeff replied.

The realized quickly that all they could do was count themselves lucky and, after taking a few moments to look for anything they could use, they moved on.

"So, if we're supposed to go to the ski lodge, why were we lead to Wellington?" Clementine asked, as they walked.

"I don't know," Jeff replied. "Maybe we'll find out when we find whoever took the kids."

Clementine nodded in agreement, as they continued their search.

 **2 Weeks Later:**

The sun had just reached the high noon position in the sky when Jeff and Clementine arrived at the ruins of an old rest stop. Upon further inspection, they started to see something familiar about their surroundings.

"Does this look familiar to you, Clem?" Jeff asked.

"It does," she replied. "It's as if… we've been here before."

"We have been here, before," he replied. "Think about it." He pointed to the buildings and playground. "That's where Jane and Kenny almost killed each other."

"When she tried to make him think AJ and I were dead," she added.

"All to prove a point that didn't need to be made," Jeff concluded.

Silence fell and the pair thought about that day.

"Even though she didn't need to prove anything,"Jeff said, breaking the silence. "Kenny almost proved her right."

"Until you stopped him," Clementine added. "I still can't believe she would do that. It makes me wonder if she took the kids."

"She's messed up, Clem," he replied. "But not that crazy. Either way, we're better off without her."

"Agreed," Clementine said.

Taking one last look at the area, they turned and walked away.

 **2 Days Later:**

"Are you sure we're going the right way?" Clementine asked.

"Yes," Jeff replied. "There's no doubt we're going the right way, Clem."

Before they knew it, they reached a clearing where a familiar structure still stood.

"I don't believe it," Clementine said. "It's still standing."

Before them was the unfinished house they had stayed in. The house where the group had split, thanks to the treachery of people they thought they could trust. Not taking any chances, they drew their guns and slowly approached the building. As they approached, Jeff noticed something different about the area in front of it. There were three grass-covered piles of dirt next to the front door that looked like graves. They reached the mounds and saw names painted on planks of wood: _Luke, Sarah,... Arvo_. The last name had them in shock. Arvo had been the reason for the split in the first place, as well as another near-death experience for Clementine.

"Who would bury someone like Arvo?" Clementine asked.

"Only two people would do that," Jeff replied.

"Hold it right there!" came a voice.

Jeff and Clementine immediately raised their guns.

"You wish!" Jeff replied, with his finger on the trigger. "Put your gun down."

"Like **** I will," the man said.

"Mike," came a female voice. "What's going on?"

Jeff and Clementine froze, then slowly lowered their weapons.

"Mike?" Jeff asked, in shock.

"Jeff? Clementine?" Mike said, in disbelief. "You're alive?"

"Unfortunately, for you," Clementine replied, with hatred.

Just then a woman hurried outside, with a gun of her own.

"What is going…" she began, then stopped in her tracks. "...on?"

"Bonnie. Just our luck that we would run into you traitors," Clementine said, before raising her weapon again.

"Traitors?" Mike asked.

"Leaving us to join Arvo was a treasonous act, Mike," Jeff said, with his gun aimed right at Mike's head. "Taking our food and leaving us- No, leaving AJ to starve to death."

"You and Kenny were talking crazy, man," Mike replied. "We did what we thought was the right thing, at the time."

"It looks like we made a mistake, though," Bonnie said, with a look of guilt. "Please tell me AJ didn't suffer."

"He's still alive," Clementine replied.

"Oh thank heavens," Bonnie said, breathing a sigh of relief. "Where is he?"

"He was abducted from a ranch he had been placed at, for safety," Jeff replied.

"What? When?" Mike asked.

"A few weeks ago," Clementine replied.

"Maybe it's better if we talk inside," Bonnie suggested. "Then you two can catch us up on everything that's happened since we last saw each other."

Jeff and Clementine agreed and followed them inside, where they found the house had been well taken care of, in the years since they had last been there. Once everyone found a place to sit, Jeff and Clementine proceeded to tell Mike and Bonnie everything that happened. Kenny nearly killing Jane for lying about AJ and Clementine dying, finding Wellington (this left Mike feeling dumb for not believing), having to move on from Wellington, Finding Abby in Jeff's hometown, and so on. When they reach the part where Kenny died, they choked up a bit, earning some sympathy from the other two. Once they recovered, they continued on to the part where they were separated and finally the events involving the Garcia family. When they finished, Mike and Bonnie were speechless.

"Holy ****," Mike said. "All that and now this."

"Yeah," Jeff replied, with a somber tone. "We're following the kids and their abductor, thanks to information we received shortly after we left Richmond. Hopefully it'll help us find them…"

"And whoever took them," Clementine finished for him.

She looked over at the graves for Luke and Sarah, with a nagging question resurfacing.

"How did you get them out of the lake?" she asked.

"It wasn't easy," Mike replied. "We had to wait for the temperatures to be warm enough that we could go and collect their bodies from the lake, for a proper burial. After all: They were our friends and they died trying to save others in the group. It's the least we could do."

There was some silence before Bonnie spoke up.

"Since you told us your story," she began. It's only fair we tell ours."

With that, Mike and Bonnie took turns telling everything that happened before and after burying their friends. There had been trips back to Howe's Hardware and the old Civil War site at Parker's Run, for whatever supplies they could find. There had also been close calls with herds of walkers, as had been the case before the group fell apart. Finally, they explained how they felt after the split, when asked.

"It tore us apart," Mike said. "We didn't know if you were dead or alive."

"Not to mention we knew Kenny and Jane would eventually butt heads about something," Bonnie added. "She was just as convinced as we were that Wellington didn't exist and I could tell it would get to Kenny." She looked at Jeff. "Then there was your obsession with trying to get back home to see if you could find anyone alive. We wanted you to make it… but Jane didn't have to even speak for us to know she believed it was a lost cause. I admit: Jane did turn out crazier than Kenny, as your story explained, but we still couldn't take a risk. You know that, right?"

"Yes," Jeff replied. "I, too, believed he was losing it. But I didn't want to give up on him, just yet. He was a broken man. He lost his family, he lost many, many friends he'd made, and the hits kept coming. Both figuratively and literally."

With this, they ended the discussion and went inside, as a lite rain began to fall. After some more discussion about happier topics, they all fell asleep and the rain outside became a steady downpour.

The next morning, Jeff and Clementin were preparing to continue their journey when Bonnie and Mike walked up, with some supplies.

"Here," Bonnie said, handing Clementine a bag. "It's not much, but it should help you keep going."

"Thanks," Clementine replied.

Meanwhile, Mike had something for Jeff, wrapped in an old, worn out blanket.

"Something to help you deal with the walkers," he said, handing the gift to Jeff.

Jeff opened the cloth and gasped. There, in his hands, was Luke's machete he always carried… right up until his death.

"Luke would want you to have it," Mike continued. "You guys had become good friends by the time he died, so we figured he would've given it to you, had he been able to."

Jeff smiled.

"Thanks," he said.

With some help from Clementine, Jeff placed the weapon on his back, just like Luke used to. With all their belongs accounted for, they walked over to their friends.

"I wish you didn't have to go," Bonnie said.

"If we didn't have to, that would mean we would've found the kids and returned to Richmond already," Clementine began.

"Right," Bonnie replied.

"Take care out there," Mike said.

"We've made it this long, Mike," Jeff relied, with a smile.

After a final goodbye, the team set out and around the lake, taking out walkers as they went. Once around the lake, they headed for the only place they could think that the kidnapper would go: Howe's Hardware.

That evening:

The sun was beginning to set as they reached another familiar location.

"Still looks like it did the day we left," Jeff said.

"What'd you expect?" Clementine asked. "Other than the signs of time passing, Parker's Run doesn't look much different from…"

Jeff picked up on the sudden change in his friend's mood.

"The day I left," he finished for her. "Don't forget that I came back, Clem. Right when you needed me most… despite what I had convinced myself to believe. You knew I was wrong and what Arvo's group did to ours backed that up." He paused. "Thanks for never giving up on me."

Clementine smiled.

"You never gave up on me," she said. "Why should I give up on you?"

Jeff didn't have an answer, nor did he need one. Deep down, he knew she was right.

The all too familiar sound of walkers snapped them back to reality, once again putting them in survival mode. The small herd was no match for them as Clementine shot down several, while Jeff made use of Luke's machete to cut down the rest. After taking a look around to make sure they got all of them, they hurried for the old gift shop, which was surprisingly still in great shape. They entered through the door at the bottom, after remembering the stairs were gone, and barricaded themselves in, in case any walkers figured out where they were. Once that was done, they settled in for the night, again taking a trip down memory lane.

"Remember this?" Jeff asked, pointing to the room they were in.

"How could I forget?" Clementine asked. "Through the chaos, AJ came into this world in this room."

"I remember the madness to get Rebecca up here so he could have the chance to live," Jeff said. "Then AJ had to go and scare us into thinking he didn't make it. Sneaky little guy even before he knew where he was."

"Yeah," Clementine replied. Then her face changed to show concern. "We have to get him back. I promised Kenny I'd look after him. You and me… We're all he and Abby have."

"I know, Clem," Jeff said. "We'll get them back. We won't stop until we do."

"And what if we get bit saving them?" she asked.

"Like Katja did for you?" Jeff asked in response.

"Yeah," she replied.

"Well, we'll do what we can to get them back before our time's up," he said. "From there, it'll be up to Abby to look after AJ. But… you and I both know we're gonna make sure that doesn't happen. Right?"

Clementine smiled.

"Right," she replied.

They continued to talk for a while, before they both started yawning and realized that it was getting dark. As the last of the light faded, they both picked a place in the room to lay down and were soon sound asleep.

 **Hey guys! I'm back! Sorry for such a long wait, but a number of factors lead to the delay. Vacation, writer's block, and procrastinatioin were the main causes (mostly the last one :P), but I'm back and hope to get into a more frequent release schedule after this update. See you next time!**


	6. Chapter 5

**Hey hey! I'm finally back! Sorry for taking so long, but I just kept getting distracted from the story. That said, here's Chapter 5!**

 **Howe's**

The morning sun was just beginning to rise as Jeff and Clementine woke up. They ate a lite breakfast, gathered their supplies, and carefully made their way down the stairs of the gift shop, watching for any walkers that could be at the door. As they exited, they looked around and made sure it was safe before heading toward the next stop on their trip down Memory Lane.

After a good amount of walking, they reach a clearing and stop. There before them was the place where their friendship was nearly destroyed: Howe's Hardware. They looked at each other, as if unsure they really wanted to continue, before walking again. They nearly make it to the old truck door when Clementine stops, looking at the ground.

"Clem?" Jeff asked. "Are you okay?"

"Look," she replied.

Jeff looked where she was staring and gasped. There, half eaten by walkers, was what was left of Carlos.

"Ugh," Jeff said. "He deserved better than this."

"They all did," Clementine replied.

"Still," Jeff began. "He'd be happy to know that Sarah made it long enough to at least make an attempt to save someone's life before she died."

"What could've been," Clementine said. "If we had been to take the time to do as we promised and teach her how to handle the way the world is, now…"

"She might still be here," Jeff finished for her. "I know, Clem. But we really don't know that. Come on. We need to keep going."

"Right," Clementine said, snapping out of her thoughts.

Carefully, they moved forward, quietly taking out their weapons as they go. As they reached the door, they saw more chewed up remains. As they took some time to examine the body, Jeff recognized the clothes.

"Troy," he said.

"Got what many believed he had coming," Clementine said.

"Even though he was a complete jerk," Jeff replied. "He didn't deserve this."

They quickly moved inside, minding their surroundings for any surprises, and quickly encountered another gruesome sight: There, laying on the floor, were the remains of Carver.

"So he did end up dying here," Clementine said.

Jeff looked at his friend, then the remains, then sighed.

"During the days we were separated," he began. "I circled back here, hoping to find the place abandoned. Instead, I found him still hanging on. Swearing revenge on us for the collapse of his community."

"What'd you do?" She asked.

"I gave him a nice reminder of what he had made me do to you, days before," he replied. "Then I shot him right between his eyes. Guess it was both for revenge and out of mercy."

"How does that even work?" Clementine asked.

"I don't know," Jeff replied. "Just seems to make sense, somehow."

There was silence as they slowly moved away from the scene and checked the rest of the building. As they walked, they saw several walkers that had been turned into swiss cheese by Carver's people, along with the bodies of some of the latter who didn't make it out in time. They approach the stairs to Carver's office and find Alvin's body still laying where Jeff had seen him fall.

"So this is where he gave up his life to save you," Clementine said.

"Yes," Jeff replied, with a somber tone. "I tried to get him to come with me, but… he knew only one of us could rejoin the group. He took two of the guards down, before being shot himself."

"We'll have to remember to tell AJ that, when we get him back," she said. "He has to know that his dad was a hero."

"To the very end," Jeff added.

Slowly, they resumed their search, finding the place eerily quiet, but thankfully empty. After finding what was left of the expansion to be vacant, they remembered they had one more place to check: The Pen.

Slowly, they crept into the makeshift jail and looked around. Finding it empty, they holstered their guns.

"Nothing, yet again," Clementine said, in frustration.

"Yeah," Jeff replied. "But, you know they would've likely been here, had be decided to ignore this horrible place."

Clementine nodded in agreement, as they started for the door. Just as they were about to walk through, Jeff took one last look and spotted something he didn't see before: A piece of paper on one of the beds. Picking it up, Jeff read whas had been written on it and gasped.

"What?" Clementine asked. "What does it say?"

Jeff took a deep breath and read the note aloud.

"Want the kids? You'll have to keep retracing your steps to even have a chance at getting them back! Want to know where to go next? Here's your clue: You were captured and dragged away from the place by the man who used to run the community you helped bring down. Good luck."

They looked at each other in stunned silence, for several moments, before Jeff finally spoke.

"This has to end," he said, as he turned away. "We will make them pay for putting us through all of this. They will regret crossing us!"

 **Oh Boy. Things are about to get nuts! But before that, there's more steps for our team to retrace. Safe to say you already know where they're headed next. Until next time...**


	7. Chapter 6

**Cabin Fever**

A couple of days had passed since Jeff and Clementine had left the hardware store and they were beginning to wonder when they would reach their next stop on the forced trip down memory lane.

"I'm worried about where we're going next," Clementine said.

"I know," Jeff replied. "Not many pleasant memories there."

"It felt safe," Clementine added. "Like we could stay there, even if the cabin group moved on. I found Kenny and I knew you'd stay with me, wherever I chose to go. But then…"

"Then Carver happened," Jeff finished for her.

Before he could continue, he spotted a familiar site: a wind turbine that had been sitting dormant for a long time.

"We're close," he said.

Taking deep breaths, the duo walked on until they walked into a clearing, where the ski lodge they remembered well still stood. Taking a moment to inspect it, they were amazed by its condition.

"It's almost like we left yesterday," Clementine said.

"On the outside," Jeff replied. "But what's inside?"

"Only one way to find out," Clementine said.

Jeff gave a slight nod, before they walked up to the door, pulling out their choice of weapon as they went. Carefully, Jeff opened the front door and crept inside, with Clementine close behind, making sure nothing surprised them from behind. Once they were sure the main lobby was clear, they relaxed a little more, but didn't completely drop their guard. They saw the benches where they'd been forced to leave their weapons and belongings, as a sign of trust to their hosts, that day. As she looked around, Clementine gasped.

"What?" Jeff asked. "What's wrong?"

Clementine responded by holding up a backpack that Jeff immediately recognized. After looking through it, she smiled.

"It's all still here," she said. "Even my drawing of Kenny, Katjaa, and Duck."

"What about the other picture?" Jeff asked.

She looked a little more, to be sure she didn't miss anything, then stopped suddenly.

"My picture of Lee," she began, with tears of joy filling her eyes. "It's here, too."

Jeff smiled and turned back to his inspection. The walk didn't last long, however, as he discovered a corpse. He didn't need to even think to know who it was.

"Oh Walter," he said, closing his eyes. "Kindest man I've met, since this all began… and look what you got for a reward."

By this point, Clementine had joined him, with her old backpack on one shoulder.

"He didn't deserve this," she said.

"No" Jeff replied, in agreement. "We have to give him a proper burial… after we've cleared the place of any walkers that may have got in, with that window now wide open."

"We have Kenny to thank for that," Clementine said.

"He was just trying to save the rest of the group," Jeff replied. "But even if we had taken Carver and his crew out, that would've needed fixed fast."

Clementine nodded in agreement, then they split up and searched the building. To their surprise, not a single walker or survivor was found in any of the rooms. Their search complete, they walked down to Walter's remains.

"This'll be tricky," Clementine said.

"He landed on one of the smaller rugs," Jeff noted. "So let's wrap him in it and use it to bury him. Will make carrying to the grave site that much easier."

The plan set, they carefully wrapped the rug around Walter's body and carried it outside, where Jeff found a shovel. After they set the remains down, he began to dig and kept digging until the hole was enough to fulfill the intended purpose. Together, they lowered the corpse into the hole and Jeff filled it back in. Once the job was done, they just stood there, staring at the grave.

"Goodbye Walter," Jeff said. "Thank you for your kindness and hospitality… even if it got you killed, in the end."

"We'll never forget you," Clementine added.

They didn't speak again, as they stood for a few minutes more. Once they believed they'd done all they could, they gathered their belongings and made their way down the hill.

Once at the bottom, they checked the old train station and found it picked clean, which didn't surprise them. After making a final sweep, to be sure they didn't miss anything, they set their sights on the old railroad bridge. As they went, they remembered the events that had taken place on the old bridge.

"This is where my gun fell and misfired," Jeff said, looking at a small spot of dried blood. "Killing the other man who showed nothing but kindness."

"You and I both know that was an accident," Clementine replied.

"Still haunts me," Jeff said.

Moving on, they came across a new problem: Where the old train car once stood, there was now a large gap.

"Guess the old railroad ties finally rotted enough for the car to break through," Jeff said, as they carefully looked down into the river.

"I can't see it, down there," Clementine replied.

"Plenty of water flow to hide it," Jeff said, before turning his attention to the task of getting around the hole. "We'll carefully work our way over using the side of the bridge. It's dangerous, but so were a lot of other things we've done."

Working carefully, Jeff and Clementine slowly worked their way around the hole until they were safely on the other side. Once there, they quickly but carefully finished crossing the bridge, before stopping to rest.

"Well," Jeff said. "We both know what's next."

"The long walk to the cabin," Clementine replied.

Without another word, they resumed their walk.

Five days later, they found themselves at the familiar sight of the river they remembered from another day they had tried hard to forget. Before them was the river they remembered all-to-well.

"This feels way too familiar," Clementine said.

"It should," Jeff replied. "This is where we lost Nick and Pete."

As they carefully crossed, they saw what little remained of the bandits, as well as their friends, before reaching the other side and moving on, as quickly as they could. After a short walk, the reach a clearing, and they looked on in amazement at the sight before them. There, looking much like it did the last time they saw it, was the cabin.

"I'm amazed to see it still holding up so well," Clementine said.

"You'd be surprised at how well even a log cabin can be built," Jeff replied. "All the same, we best be careful."

Clementine nodded in understanding, as they each picked a weapon of choice and slowly approached. Carefully, they walked around the entire structure, checking for walkers and potential living threats. When they found the perimeter clear, they focused their attention on the back door. As they approached, Clementine stopped and looked at the ground.

"What's wrong?" Jeff asked.

"Just… remembering that night," Clementine replied.

"The night you thought you'd lost me," Jeff replied. "And got yourself bit by a dog, before you ended up here."

"It was also the night we met the cabin group," Clementine added.

"Some first meeting," Jeff said, with a slight smile. "They tried to put you down, because of a bite they thought was from a walker."

Clementine smiled.

"But you stopped them," she said.

"I didn't spend all that time training you to protect yourself just to see you be put down by some strangers," Jeff replied. "If you're gonna go, go out fighting. At least, that's how I see it, with how the world is, now."

Clementine smiled again.

"I don't think I ever thanked you for defending me that night," she said.

"I don't need thanks," Jeff replied. "I had a promise to keep. And that promise was the protect you and train you to take care of yourself, in case I was the one who ended up bitten."

"I'm glad you haven't been," she said.

"So am I, Clem," Jeff replied. "Come on. Let's clear the inside."

Slowly, they approached the back door, and opened it. Once inside, they quietly closed the door, in case they weren't alone, and found the kitchen clear. In fact, the room looked almost exactly as they remembered it from the day they joined the cabin group in fleeing the cabin. Moving cautiously, they split up and checked every room, finding them in the same condition as the kitchen. After every room was cleared, they returned to the kitchen.

"It's very strange that the cabin seems to have not been touched since we left," Jeff said.

"After nearly two years," Clementine added. "I just don't get how it hasn't been taken over by someone, by now."

"This could be a sign that few have come this way, since we left," Jeff said. "Regardless, we're lucky it's empty."

"Yeah," Clementine replied. "Maybe we should spend the night here. Get some rest in actual beds, for the first time since we left Richmond."

"Sounds like a great idea," Jeff said. "It is getting dark, so I guess we really got lucky in finding this place, again."

With a nod of agreement from Clementine, they hurried to the kitchen to make their best attempts at a proper dinner, which turned out better than they expected, before they went to the living room to catch up on their progress.

"I feel like we're no closer to the kids than we were before," Clementine said, with a tone of concern.

"If this person really is out to make us suffer through reliving the past" Jeff replied. "Then they're likely gonna keep going until they run out of things to torment us with."

"As much as I hate hearing that," Clementine said. "I know you're right."

They sat in silence for a few moments, not sure what to say next.

"So where do we go from here?" Clementine asked.

"Where else?" Jeff replied. "Further down Memory Lane, until we find and rescue the kids."

Clementine nodded in agreement, then yawned, signifying that it was time for bed. Walking upstairs, Jeff walked to the bedroom he remembered Alvin and Rebecca sleeping in, while Clementine took Sarah's room.

"Good night," Clementine said.

"Night, Clem," Jeff replied.

Despite all that was on their minds, they slept soundly, that night.


	8. Chapter 7

**I'm back! Sorry for such a long wait for this to come back, but life happened, plus a ton of writers block on the other story I'm working on. I know many of you want to see what happens next, so here it is. :)**

 **The Way Back**

The next morning, Jeff woke to find Clementine already packing up what she knew they would need for the next leg of the journey. Working fast, they gathered everything they could find and saw as useful, before walking out of the cabin for the last time and heading out.

"Where to?" Jeff asked.

"I think it would be better to head toward the river and work our way upstream," Clementine said. "Somewhere, I'm sure we'll find our way back to the camp we had the day you were shot by those bandits."

"Alright then," Jeff replied, as they started walking.

After several minutes of walking, they found the camp where Clementine found Sam the dog. As they looked around, Jeff found the dog's remains.

"Clem!" he called.

"What's up?" she asked.

Jeff gestured with his hand and Clementine gasped when she saw the carcass.

"Sam," she said, closing her eyes. "I hated doing this to him."

"I would say it wasn't your fault," Jeff replied. "But you told me it started because you took food away from him, so…"

Clementine just stared at the corpse, thinking back to that day.

"I learned the hard way to never take food from a starving dog," she finally said. "Never making that mistake again."

"Easy to do, since we rarely come across dogs anymore," Jeff replied.

No more words were exchanged as they carefully removed to dog's body from the tent spikes he had landed on and found a place to bury him in a shallow grave. After Clementine made one last apology and goodbye, they moved on.

That evening, they had found a way across the river and came across what was left of their old campsite. Seeing that it was getting dark, they decided to rest there.

"Seems like just yesterday we were here," Clementine said.

"It was a day we'd both like to forget," Jeff replied.

"Yeah," Clementine said, as she set her bag down.

"I remember finally snapping you out of the guilt you had been holding onto from that close call with that girl, at the rest stop," Jeff said.

"I'm glad you did," Clementine replied. "I don't even want to think about would've happened, if you hadn't."

Jeff nodded in agreement, before also setting his bag down and setting up camp. After some light dinner and conversation, they fell asleep, dreaming of better days ahead. The next morning, they quickly set off again, in the direction of the last big event to happen in their time as a team: the old rest stop.

 **One month later:**

The sun had only just begun to rise as Jeff and Clementine made their way through the woods. The search for the kids was beginning to wear them down, as they had found few clues to help them stay on the right path. Finally, they reached a clearing and found another familiar site.

"I can't believe it's still standing," Jeff said.

"It's made of mostly brick and stone," Clementine replied. "It's gonna take a long time for that to fall, naturally."

Before them was the rest stop they were looking for, which looked almost exactly like it did that day, many years before. Drawing their weapons, they cautiously moved toward the restroom doors. After opening the men's restroom door and finding nothing, they decided to check the room where it all happened. They both felt a bit of anxiety as they each took a side of the door, remembering that there may be a familiar-looking walker inside. Cautiously, Jeff opened the door and crept inside, with his long-time friend following him. Looking around, they find what they were expecting: the girl who had held Clementine's own gun against her.

"She looks like she's been dead a long time," Clementine said. "Must've taken a while for her to either bleed out or die of infection."

"Looks like her death was by infection," Jeff replied. "I don't see enough blood stains for her to have bled out. Either way, she had it coming… but I wish it didn't have to be that way."

"Judging by the look of her body, she did turn," Clementine observed. "I'm guessing we have our kidnapper to thank for her final death."

Silence fell in the room, as the pair thought back to that day, several years ago. After several minutes, Jeff spoke.

"Come on, Clem," he said. "It's time to move on. AJ and Abby are still waiting for us to save them."

Clementine nodded as she followed him out the door.

"You know where our mystery person is leading us next, right?" Jeff asked, as they walked.

Clementine gave a slight nod, before turning her focus to the path ahead.

"Savannah."

 **(dramatic music faintly heard) We're getting back to where everything went wrong for Clementine, which means there's not much left to cover... or is there? To find out, follow this story (if you haven't already). I'm going to go back to my other story, to write out the next chatper, which is short, then I'll return to this and not leave again, until it's completed! Until then, take care! :)**


	9. Chapter 8

**Lord Revan Reborn: I think these next two chapters will explain why it can't be Christa. :)**

 **Savannah**

It had been several days since Jeff and Clemetine had left the rest stop behind, and it didn't take long for them to start thinking back to their early days as a team. They talked about the first day, when Jeff cut Clementine's hair into her signature look, to keep her safe. Clementine then reminded Jeff of her first gun lessons, which were interesting, to say the least.

"You were fun to teach about proper gun use," Jeff said.

"But look how I turned out," Clementine replied.

"Yeah, you've done great," Jeff said. "You've helped me out of many situations with what I've taught you."

Clementine just smiled, as they continued to walk. After some time, they come to a clearing and find a place to rest. After setting up camp, Jeff realises where they've stopped.

"Clem," he said. "Take a look at where we are."

Clementine looked around and her eyes widened in realization.

"We're where we first met," she said.

"You know what this means," Jeff said.

Clementine nodded with a sad look on her face.

"We're getting to the hard part of this journey," she replied.

 _ **Years earlier:**_

 _(9-year-old Clementine points gun at Jeff)_

" _Whoa," he said, putting his hands up. "Easy, kid. I don't want to hurt you."_

" _Are you lying to me?" she asked. "My group was tricked by people who said that before."_

 _(Jeff looks around for her group)_

" _Where's your group?" He asked her._

" _I- Th- they're dead," she said, lowering the gun. "One of the group got bit and turned before we could put him down. Killed everyone but me and two men who were in the engine of the train we were using to reach Savannah. I survived the fall, thanks to the sacrifice of the other who fell out with me, then found the rest, who had joined two others."_

 _(wipes a tear from her eye)_

" _The adults that were left gave their lives to make sure I got out. As far as I know, I'm the only one left."_

 _(Jeff gets a sad look on his face and sits by her)_

" _I'm sorry that this happened to you," he said. "It'll be alright. Might take time, but it'll be alright."_

 _(Clementine wipes the last of her tears away)_

" _By the way," the young man said. "I don't think we've been properly introduced. Name's Jeff, and you are…"_

" _Clementine," she replied._

" _That's a nice name," he told her, smiling._

" _Thank you," she said._

" _Now, I can't leave you all alone out here," he said, with a bit of concern in his voice. "How'd you like to come along with me?"_

" _Okay," she said, giving a weak smile._

" _Alright," he said. "That's settled. I promise to help you keep any promises you likely made to your friends, when they gave their lives for you. We'll get started first thing in the morning."_

" _Sounds good," she replied, as she helped him set up camp._

 **Present Day:**

"I never got to thank you," Clementine said, smiling at Jeff.

"I've told you before," he began. "You don't have to. All those times you've helped me since we met are thanks enough."

She smiled again and hugged him, a gesture he returned.

"Thanks anyway," she said, as she let him go.

They start eating what food they had available, in silence. Soon, they both start thinking about where to go next.

"So," Jeff began. "Where do we go from here? This part of the journey is part of your past, not mine."

"Last place I remember being were wasn't far from the mansion Kenny, Christa, Omid, and Chuck had taken shelter in, after they thought I was dead with the others. So we should start there… Actually, I want to try the Marsh House first."

"Mind if I ask why?" Jeff asked.

"I never got to find out what happened to my parents," she said. "Last place I knew they'd be was that hotel. I know it's been years since I was last here, but I have to try."

Jeff gave her a sympathetic look.

"Then the Marsh House is where we'll start," he said.

After that, they decided to get to sleep, so they could be ready for the start of the hard part of the journey, in the morning.

 **And now we're getting to the point where things become emotionally tough for Clementine. :(**

 **I have the next two weeks off from work, so I'll try to get more chapters out, in that time frame. Until then, take care!**


End file.
